Boston, Mass., July 15, 2016 – Boston Pride sends its thoughts and condolences to the families of the victims of the horrifying terrorist attack that occurred yesterday in Nice, France, during the Bastille Day fireworks. Additionally, we stand in solidarity with the various Pride organizers in the south of France who had to cancel or postpone their LGBT Pride celebrations following this terrible incident. In particular, Boston Pride sends its support to Fierté Montpellier Pride and Pride Marseille whose major Pride events were scheduled for this weekend. Our theme of “Solidarity Through Pride” is unfortunately put once again to the test in dramatic circumstances. Boston Pride, a founding member of InterPride, will work through the international organization to provide assistance to our sister Pride groups in France as they request.

Boston, Mass., July 8, 2016 – Below is a statement from Sylvain Bruni, president of Boston Pride, regarding the public accommodations bill for transgender individuals, which was signed into law today by Governor Charlie Baker:

By passing legislation that will ensure that transgender men and women are protected against unwarranted discrimination in public, Massachusetts continues to make strides on LGBTQ issues. We wish to thank all community organizations that mobilized to make this bill pass, as well as both Senate President Stan Rosenberg and Speaker of the House Robert Deleo for their leadership on this issue. We thank Gov. Baker for signing this law, ensuring that our Commonwealth joins 17 other states, Washington D.C., and more than 200 cities and towns across the country that have passed non-discrimination laws protecting gender identity in public spaces. We just concluded a successful Pride Month in Boston but we are reminded every day that many members of our community continue to face prejudice and bigotry in their daily lives. We look forward to a day when all are treated with respect, fairly and equally, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or race and ethnicity.

About Boston Pride
Boston Pride produces events and activities to achieve inclusivity, equality, respect, and awareness in Greater Boston and beyond. Fostering diversity, unity, visibility and dignity, we educate, communicate and advocate by building and strengthening community connections. Pride Month 2017 will be held June 1 – 30, with the annual Boston Pride Parade and Festival on Saturday, June 10, 2017.
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Boston, MA – July 7, 2016 – Boston Pride expresses its outrage and disgust at the language employed by State Senate candidate Ted Busiek when he recently tweeted his praise of Donald Trump for “putting self-righteous faggots in their place since 1993.” It is baffling that in the year 2016, in Massachusetts, a candidate for office would employ such a term, especially right after Boston completed a highly successful LGBTQ Pride month celebration.

Mr. Busiek seems not to realize that his use of this f* word (and the subsequent defense of that usage in a pedantic yet silly “case for coarse language”) signals publicly that, as a possible representative of citizens of the Bay State, it’s ok to call someone such a term. Mr. Busiek needs, unfortunately, to be reminded that hate speech hurts, and hate speech kills. Bullying against queer students, rejection of LGBTQ youth from their homes, violence against trans* people, against people of color, and high suicide attempt rates amongst our community’s youth are a tough reality, even in our Commonwealth. Casually dropping that kind of f* bomb simply fuels the flames of homophobia and legitimizes hateful behavior.

This language has no place in political discourse, it has no place in public discourse. Boston Pride calls on Republican leaders in the Bay State to disavow unequivocally Mr. Busiek.

(Boston, MA) – July 1, 2016 – Boston Pride announced today that Pride Month, June 2016, combined a tremendous amount of engagement by the LGBT community, through the many events and activities sponsored by Boston Pride, with a time of sadness, as the organization joined with others to mourn the lives lost in the Orlando shooting at Pulse nightclub.

This year’s theme Solidarity Through Pride, resonated at every event, from the Rainbow Flag Raising Ceremony at City Hall Plaza on June 3, to the final Pride Month event sponsored by Black and Latin@ Pride, the LGBT Roller Bounce, on June 30. The annual Pride Parade on June 11, was one of the most attended ever, with an estimated 500,000 spectators, 35,000 marchers, 257 contingents and 28 floats. Boston Pride thanks profusely its volunteers, sponsors and partners, who all made this large and diverse celebration of the LGBT community possible.

“Pride Month is a special time for the LGBT community and Boston Pride is grateful for the tremendous support we received from our hard working volunteers, our sponsors and everyone who came to our events,” said Sylvain Bruni, President of Boston Pride. “Our theme, ‘Solidarity Through Pride’ took on a special meaning throughout Pride Month, especially in the aftermath of Orlando.”

After the shootings in Orlando, Boston Pride held moments of silence at the Back Bay and Jamaica Plain Block Parties, both previously scheduled annual events to mark Pride Month. Boston Pride joined Mayor Walsh and the community at the vigil for the Orlando victims on City Hall Plaza on Monday, June 13. In addition, Boston Pride supported a fundraiser organized on Monday, June 20, to benefit the victims and their families. “The attack in Orlando reminds us that we must continue to be out, to be loud, and to be proud if we are to achieve full equality. We will continue to support each other and all of the members of our community by doing so,” Bruni said.

Boston Pride is an all-volunteer organization and Bruni says that all are welcome to help plan and staff next year’s events. The first production meeting is scheduled for September 13, 2016 at 6:30 at the Boston Pride office, 12 Channel Street, for those interested in volunteering for Boston Pride 2017.

Bruni also announced that there will be a series of events for Latin@ Pride Week in late September/early October and to visit the Boston Pride website for updates.

In addition, Boston Pride is asking for feedback through a community survey available on its website at www.bostonpride.org/survey

About Boston Pride

Boston Pride produces events and activities to achieve inclusivity, equality, respect, and awareness in Greater Boston and beyond. Fostering diversity, unity, visibility and dignity, we educate, communicate and advocate by building and strengthening community connections. Pride Month 2017 will be held June 1-June 30 with the annual Parade on Saturday, June 10, 2017.

Today’s Boston Pride Guide spotlight is on people with LGBTQ parents. Emily McGranachan’s article “Family Outing” recounts the author’s own experience being raised by two moms as well as heartwarming stories of children with lesbian or gay parents. A 2013 study showed that approximately 125,000 same-sex couples are raising 220,000 children in the United States.

Are you an avid traveler? Wondering where to go next? Then today’s spotlight is right for you. In her article “Sites Unseen,” LoAnn Halden uncovers three unexpected LGBT-friendly destinations: Cape Town (South Africa), Japan, and St. Petersburgh, FL. Discover what makes these places special for our community… enjoy!

Today’s spotlight is on Boston Pride’s programming that exemplifies this year’s Pride theme of “Solidarity Through Pride.” First, we encourage you to read about the Community Forum on Intersectionality held in March, which created a space for educating our community and sharing experiences related to intersectional identities in the LGBT community. Then, we invite you to discover Boston Pride’s Community Fund program, which awarded financial support to eleven organizations in our community.

Boston Pride creates change and progress in society by embracing our community’s diverse history, culture, and identities, promoting community engagement and inclusivity, and striving for visibility and respect in unity.

Mission

Boston Pride produces events and activities to achieve inclusivity, equality, respect, and awareness in Greater Boston and beyond. Fostering diversity, unity, visibility and dignity, we educate, communicate and advocate by building and strengthening community connections.